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← CockpitCompetitor Analysis › 601900.SS Southern Publishing & Media Co. Ltd. Class AOpen in the cockpit ↗

Southern Publishing & Media Co. Ltd. Class A601900.SSCompetitor analysis, valuation and peers

China · CNY·Communication Services›Publishing: Books/Magazines

Guangdong's state publishing group, publishing K-12 textbooks and general books with provincial bookstore retail distribution.

≈ A Chinese state-owned publisher/bookstore chainMomentum leader 98
Mkt cap
$2.09B
US dollars, full cap
Free float
38%
of shares outstanding
$/day
$50.1M
20-day average traded
Fwd P/E
11.6×
forward earnings
ROIC−WACC
+8.3 pp
WACC 5.5%
Hurdle
-15 pp
Req g minus delivered
Next earnings
174 days
29 Apr 2027
Close · CNYCN¥15.83
1D-0.9%
1W+7.8%
1M+28.0%
3M+31.5%
6M+26.6%
YTD+18.1%
1Y+15.7%
ATR %4.2%
52w lowhigh6.0% off high

What Southern Publishing & Media does

Guangdong's state publishing group, publishing K-12 textbooks and general books with provincial bookstore retail distribution.

In one line: A Chinese state-owned publisher/bookstore chain.

Products and services

  • K-12 textbook publishing
  • General book publishing
  • Bookstore retail

Customers

  • Schools and education bureaus
  • Retail book buyers

Where it sits in the supply chain

  • Media & publishing
  • Book publishing/printing
  • Retail distribution

What could go right

  • Stable textbook demand

What could go wrong

  • Declining school-age population
  • Print-to-digital shift

Moat: narrow (regulatory licence, distribution). Provincial textbook publishing licence plus a dedicated bookstore distribution network.

Headquarters: Guangzhou, Guangdong, China · Employees: 7,010

Named competitors

Southern Publishing & Media at a glance

Size Southern Publishing & Media (601900.SS) is a China Communication Services company (Publishing: Books/Magazines) with a market value of $2.09B, the 1208th largest of 4,839 China companies the cockpit tracks. Shares closed at CN¥15.83 on 6 Nov 2026.

Performance Over six months the shares gained 26.6%, against +0.9% for the median peer and -16.4% for the China market (cap-weighted) — 3rd highest of 21 in its peer set.

Growth Revenue fell 3.3% over the last twelve months (peer median -2.8%); the operating margin is 16.4% (peer median 7.4%).

Valuation It trades at 11.6× forward earnings against a peer median of 14.7× (4th cheapest of 19).

Price implies For today's price to make sense, revenue must grow about -10% a year for seven years (Req g). Recent delivered growth is +5%, so the hurdle is -15 pp: the price already allows for a slowdown.

Capital Return on invested capital runs 8.3 points above its cost of capital (5.5% WACC).

Next results Next results expected around 29 Apr 2027 (exchange calendar; dates can move).

Relative performance

10012011 May 202611 Aug 20266 Nov 2026601900.SS 126Peer median 100
Six months, rebased to 100: Southern Publishing & Media against the median of its 20 peers (local-currency closes).

Southern Publishing & Media financials

Reported figures in CNY; fiscal year ends 2025-12-31. TTM = trailing twelve months.
TTMFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022
RevenueCN¥8.65BCN¥8.62BCN¥9.11BCN¥9.35BCN¥9.05B
Revenue growth—-5%-3%+3%—
Gross profitCN¥3.59BCN¥2.98BCN¥2.83BCN¥2.78BCN¥2.69B
EBITDAn/aCN¥1.43BCN¥1.32BCN¥1.26BCN¥1.29B
Net incomeCN¥1.27BCN¥1.04BCN¥810MCN¥1.28BCN¥955M
Free cash flowCN¥1.34BCN¥1.09BCN¥665MCN¥1.03BCN¥2.23B
Capital expenditureCN¥644MCN¥730MCN¥687MCN¥578MCN¥278M
Total debtCN¥1.03BCN¥1.40BCN¥1.82BCN¥1.44BCN¥1.13B

Quarterly statements and history in the cockpit →

Southern Publishing & Media competitor charts

The default views of Competitor Analysis ▸ Charts, drawn from the same data. Open them in the cockpit to change the axes, pin companies and read every value.

Performance: 6-month against 1-month return

0%+20%+40%0%+10%+20%601858601019WLY60075760194960192160037300071994686010980772605577STORY-B300788SPG600551BMYSCHL301025601900.SS6-month return →1-month return →
Up and to the right = strong over both horizons. Southern Publishing & Media is the large dot.

Fundamentals: revenue growth against valuation

-20%-10%0%+10%50×100×601858601019WLY60075760194960192160037394680772601928STORY-B300788SPG600551SCHL601900.SSRevenue growth (TTM) →Forward P/E →
Further right = faster growth; higher = more expensive. The dashed lines are the peer medians. Southern Publishing & Media is the large dot.

Capital: growth delivered against growth the price implies

-20%0%+20%+40%-25%0%25%50%601858601019WLY60075760194960192194686010980772605577STORY-B300788SPGBMY301025601900.SSGrowth delivered (Del g) →Growth the price implies (Req g, 7 yrs) →
Above the diagonal = the price needs more growth than the company has been delivering; below = the price already allows for a slowdown. Southern Publishing & Media is the large dot.

Southern Publishing & Media competitors and peer comparison

Head to head with its named competitors (601900.SS vs 601928.SS vs 601098.SS)
CompanyMarket cap6M returnRevenue growthOp. marginForward P/EReq g
Southern Publishing & Media 601900.SS$2.09B+27%-3%16%11.6×-10.2%
Jiangsu Phoenix Publishing & Media 601928.SS$3.60B0%-13%7%15.4×-7.9%
China South Publishing & Media 601098.SS$3.11B+2%-1%11%13.6×-20.2%

How Southern Publishing & Media compares with its peers

Peer set: Industry: the same industry and sector in any market, nearest in size. This is the same default set the interactive Competitor Analysis opens with.

Southern Publishing & Media against its 20 peers (data as of 6 Nov 2026)
Measure601900.SSPeer medianRank in peer set
1-month return+28.0%+5.5%highest of 21
6-month return+26.6%+0.9%3rd highest of 21
Distance from 52-week high-6.0%-15.9%6th highest of 21
Revenue growth (TTM)-3.3%-2.8%10th lowest of 21
Operating margin16.4%7.4%3rd highest of 21
Forward P/E11.6×14.7×4th cheapest of 19
Growth the price implies (Req g, 7 yrs)-10.2%0.5%5th least demanding of 19
Growth delivered (Del g)+4.7%+0.9%4th highest of 19
Hurdle (Req g minus delivered)-14.8 pp-4.4 pp4th least demanding of 19
ROIC minus cost of capital+8.3 pp+4.0 pp4th highest of 21

Peer table

Peer set: Industry: the same industry and sector in any market, nearest in size
CompanyMarketMarket cap6M returnRevenue growthOp. marginForward P/EReq gDelivered g
Southern Publishing & Media 601900.SSChina$2.09B+27%-3%16%11.6×-10.2%+4.7%
China Science Publishing & Media 601858.SSChina$2.31B-23%0%10%31.4×25.2%+3.6%
Shandong Publishing & Media 601019.SSChina$2.41B+3%-8%8%12.2×-14.1%+2.9%
John Wiley & Sons WLYUnited States$2.55B+21%0%18%10.5×0.3%-2.9%
Changjiang Publishing & Media 600757.SSChina$1.67B+6%-3%11%9.9×-9.5%+1.2%
China Publishing & Media 601949.SSChina$1.64B-2%-10%3%15.9×6.3%-2.1%
Zhejiang Publishing & Media 601921.SSChina$2.71B+7%-7%10%14.0×-12.6%+1.5%
Chinese Universe Publishing & Media 600373.SSChina$1.57B-6%-5%-4%26.0×n/an/a
Central China Land Media 000719.SZChina$2.91B+5%-10%13%10.5×-8.9%-0.5%
Kadokawa 9468.TJapan$3.02B-2%+3%2%101.9×25.1%+6.1%
China South Publishing & Media 601098.SSChina$3.11B+2%-1%11%13.6×-20.2%+3.8%
China Literature 0772.HKHong Kong$3.18B-9%+12%2%34.3×40.8%-3.6%
Jiangsu Phoenix Publishing & Media 601928.SSChina$3.60B0%-13%7%15.4×-7.9%+0.5%
Heilongjiang Publishing & Media 605577.SSChina$1.03B+37%+2%7%n/a3.2%-0.5%
Storytel STORY-B.STSweden$1.01B+37%+9%12%20.2×12.0%+12.5%
Citic Press 300788.SZChina$958M-6%-2%1%42.0×26.8%-2.1%
Springer Nature AG & Co. KGaA SPG.DEGermany$4.80B+10%+3%22%13.0×-6.5%+3.4%
Time Publishing & Media 600551.SSChina$761M-5%-25%4%11.7×-21.0%+0.7%
Bloomsbury Publishing BMY.LUnited Kingdom$722M+9%-7%9%14.1×0.7%+12.0%
Scholastic SCHLUnited States$685M-7%-3%1%20.8×n/an/a
Dook Media 301025.SZChina$603M-11%-5%4%n/a52.3%-3.1%

Questions

Who are Southern Publishing & Media's main competitors?
Named competitors: Jiangsu Phoenix Publishing & Media (601928.SS), China South Publishing & Media (601098.SS). The cockpit's measured peer set (industry) also includes China Science Publishing & Media (601858.SS), Shandong Publishing & Media (601019.SS), John Wiley & Sons (WLY), Changjiang Publishing & Media (600757.SS), China Publishing & Media (601949.SS), Zhejiang Publishing & Media (601921.SS).
Is Southern Publishing & Media expensive compared with its peers?
On forward p/e it trades at 11.6× against a peer median of 14.7×, 4th cheapest of 19 in its peer set. For today's price to make sense, revenue must grow about -10% a year for seven years (Req g). Recent delivered growth is +5%, so the hurdle is -15 pp: the price already allows for a slowdown.
How has Southern Publishing & Media stock performed?
Over six months to 6 Nov 2026 the shares returned +26.6% against +0.9% for the median peer; over one year +15.7%.

How these numbers are made. Returns are close-to-close in local currency. Revenue growth and margins are trailing twelve months. Req g is the revenue growth that today's enterprise value requires for seven years at the company's own cost of capital; Delivered g is what it actually grew; the gap is the hurdle (honest precision about ±8 points, so read the ranking more than the decimal). No fair values, price targets or analyst ratings are shown, by design. Method and validation.